Angels, Pujols continue to struggle in 3-2 loss

April 25, 2012

Updated Aug. 21, 2013 1:17 p.m.

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Angels first baseman Albert Pujols fouls off a pitch against the Tampa Bay Rays during Wednesday's game at Tropicana Field. Pujols went 0 for 3 in the game, extending his hitless streak to five games as the Angels lost to the Rays, 3-2. J. MERIC, GETTY IMAGES

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The Angels' C.J. Wilson pitches against the Tampa Bay Rays during the game at Tropicana Field on Wednesday. Wilson held the Rays to two runs on six hits and struck out 11 in seven innings, but the Angels lost, 3-2. J. MERIC, GETTY IMAGES

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The Rays' Carlos Pena steals second base against the Angels on Wednesday. J. MERIC, GETTY IMAGES

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Tampa Bay's Carlos Pena is congratulated after scoring against the Angels during the game at Tropicana Field on Wednesday. J. MERIC, GETTY IMAGES

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Outfielder Bobby Abreu #53 of the Los Angeles Angels breaks his bat against the Tampa Bay Rays during the game at Tropicana Field on April 25, 2012 in St. Petersburg, Florida. J. MERIC, GETTY IMAGES

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Rays first baseman Carlos Pena takes the throw at first as Torii Hunter of the Angels gets back safely during the game at Tropicana Field. J. MERIC, GETTY IMAGES

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Rays third baseman Evan Longoria tags out Howie Kendrick of the Angels on a steal attempt. J. MERIC, GETTY IMAGES

Angels first baseman Albert Pujols fouls off a pitch against the Tampa Bay Rays during Wednesday's game at Tropicana Field. Pujols went 0 for 3 in the game, extending his hitless streak to five games as the Angels lost to the Rays, 3-2. J. MERIC, GETTY IMAGES

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – On the 10th anniversary of the franchise's only championship, the Angels are re-living the wrong end of that special season.

The Angels have nearly matched the 6-14 start that was the first chapter in the 2002 story, falling to 6-12 with a wasteful 3-2 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays on Wednesday night.

The Angels went 0 for 10 with runners in scoring position in the loss (0 for 6 in the first two innings alone) and are showing no signs of the fortitude that turned things around and produced a happy ending 10 years ago.

"What can we do? All we do is play the game," Angels outfielder Torii Hunter said, choosing words that left much for interpretation. "You have to dig deep. When things are going good, you're not trying as hard. When things are going bad, you have to dig deep and try harder – will it, believe it.

"I don't think we believe we're trying hard. ... We're just going out there and going through the motions right now. We need to go out there and do what we're supposed to do. That's everybody, not just players."

Angels manager Mike Scioscia certainly doesn't seem to have found the right answers yet.

He has gone through 16 different lineups in 18 games, oddly choosing to search for offensive consistency by changing things on a daily basis. He has seemed to rein in the Angels' aggressive baserunning, only to have two runners caught stealing at the top of innings Wednesday. He has found little reliability in the bullpen, and yet, he left Jason Isringhausen in Wednesday's game long enough to walk four batters and force in a run in the eighth inning. That decision proved costly when the Angels scored an unearned run in the ninth.

Then in that ninth as the Angels tried to stage a rally against their one-time (briefly) closer Fernando Rodney, Scioscia turned to Alberto Callaspo as a pinch hitter – looking for a single if Erick Aybar could get into scoring position (he didn't) – and left Mark Trumbo's potential game-changing power on the bench.

"I think the approach of the guys is right," Scioscia said of Wednesday's wasted opportunities. "It's a matter of executing and trusting yourself in those situations to be able to get a pitch and use the big part of the field. I don't think it has as much to do with approach as it does with execution.

"We have a lot of guys in our lineup that are not swinging the bats to their capabilities in all situations and when that's the case that stat (0 for 10 with RISP) is going to be negative also."

Albert Pujols is the elephant in the room when it comes to "guys in our lineup that are not swinging the bats to their capabilities." Pujols was hitless in three at-bats Wednesday, striking out twice against Rays right-hander Jeremy Hellickson and grounding into Rays manager Joe Maddon's defensive shift. Pujols is now hitless in his past five games – the longest he has ever gone without a hit.

But, as Scioscia has said repeatedly, the Angels are "more than Albert." But not in a good way.

Bobby Abreu led off the game with a double but stayed there as Howie Kendrick struck out, Pujols grounded out into one defensive shift (left side) and Kendrys Morales into another (right side). Hunter and Vernon Wells led off the second inning with singles and Aybar loaded the bases with one out when he reached on catcher's interference. But Chris Iannetta struck out, a 10-pitch at-bat ending when he swung and missed at a Hellickson changeup, and Abreu bounced into a forceout.

Wells hit a solo home run in the fourth inning to end a 14-inning scoreless streak for the Angels – and a 55-inning stretch without allowing a home run for Rays pitchers. But the Angels stranded Maicer Izturis after a one-out double in the seventh and only scored again when Ben Zobrist kicked a potential game-ending ground out in the ninth.

"To paraphrase a guy I used to play for (Rangers manager Ron Washington), 'That's the way baseball go,' " Angels starter C.J. Wilson said after taking a loss despite holding the Rays to two runs on six hits and striking out 11 in seven innings. "I really feel like we're close. I genuinely feel we're close to breaking through.

"We had a couple bang-bang plays at first, a couple line-drive outs and things like that. It seems like teams are executing really well against us right now. When we need something to go our way, it hasn't. But there is no reason to think that it won't. It has to at some point."

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